Attempted bombing of flight from Chicago to Washington, D.C.
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American Airlines Flight 444
The American Airlines Boeing 727-223 involved in the incident.
Occurrence
Date
November 15, 1979
Summary
Bombing
Site
near Washington Dulles International Airport 38°57′11″N77°27′00″W / 38.953°N 77.450°W / 38.953; -77.450
Aircraft
Aircraft type
Boeing 727-223
Operator
American Airlines
Registration
N876AA
Flight origin
Chicago O'Hare International Airport
Destination
Washington National Airport
Occupants
78
Passengers
72
Crew
6
Fatalities
0
Injuries
12
Survivors
78 (all)
American Airlines Flight 444 was a scheduled American Airlines flight from Chicago to Washington, D.C.'s National Airport. On November 15, 1979, the Boeing 727 serving the flight was attacked by Ted Kaczynski (also known as the Unabomber), who sent a pipe bomb in the mail and set it to detonate at a certain altitude. The bomb partially detonated in the cargo hold and caused "a sucking explosion and a loss of pressure," which was then followed by large quantities of smoke filling the passenger cabin, forcing the pilots to make an emergency landing at Dulles International Airport.[1][2][3] Twelve passengers had to be treated afterward for smoke inhalation.[2]
Bombing a commercial airliner, especially one flying through an interstate route as Flight 444 was at the time, is a federal criminal offense, and the FBI was quickly called in to investigate. The FBI investigators assigned to the case found similarities between the still relatively intact pipe bomb and two bombs that had previously detonated at Northwestern University. This prompted federal authorities to assign the name "Unabomber" (for University and Airline Bomber) to the then-unknown suspect, and sparked one of the longest and most expensive manhunts in FBI history, which finally ended 17 years later with Ted Kaczynski being arrested and charged in 1996.
^Lynton, Stephen J.; Sager, Mike; Harden, Blaine (1979-11-16). "Bomb Jolts Jet". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2015-12-12.
^ abO'Brien, John (1986-03-04). "Federal, State Officials Team Up To Hunt Creator Of 11 Bombs". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2015-12-12.
^Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 727-223 Adv. N876AA Washington-Dulles International Airport, DC (IAD)". Aviation Safety Network. Flight Safety Foundation. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
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